Fostering Self-Direction and Peer Feedback Skills in a Management Course

Abstract

This study examines the implementation and effects of co-assessment within a management course on the development of students’ ability to provide feedback, an essential competency for future managers. The size of the cohorts and the number of groups make this type of implementation challenging. Using a dedicated digital tool, therefore, opens a more realistic opportunity for deployment. Particular attention is given to self-direction, a transversal skill that enables learners to produce feedback, especially within the blended learning context. In this study, the ability to produce and provide feedback is assessed in a pre- and post-test, while their self-direction is examined through their self-determination, self-regulation, and self-efficacy in learning. By examining the interplay between co-assessment, peer feedback, and self-direction, this study aims to enhance understanding of peer feedback as both a training activity and an active learning practice. The findings identified a progression in feedback-related skills but show differentiated effects of the implemented learning scenario. The results highlighted a progression in learners’ self-direction, notably their perceived self-efficacy in delivering feedback, while improvement in their self-regulation remains moderate. These findings shed light on the intrinsic nature of self-direction as a competency, which requires learners’ proactivity in identifying their own action strategies in relation to goals as well as in monitoring their implementation to achieve targeted outcomes, while also inviting reflection on the role of external factors. This study aims to contribute to the ongoing discussion on how to design learning environments that foster both the development of feedback-related competencies and learners’ self-direction in learning.